Sally Bend's Blog, page 28
March 15, 2024
Fetish & Fantasy Freebie Friday – Putting the TG in TGIF!
Well, if it’s Friday, then it must be time to bend our way into the weekend with Fetish & Fantasy Freebie Friday!
Every Friday I search through the free titles on Amazon, looking for those that might be of interest to similarly bent readers, fans, and lovers. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon’s free reading applications.
Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.
Enjoy!
March 14, 2024
Book Tour: The Hencha Queen by J. Scott Coatsworth
Silya finally has everything she always wanted. She’s the Hencha Queen, head of the Temple, and is working to master her newfound talents. So why does the world pick now to fall apart?
Her once-nemesis Raven is off riding dragons, and their mutual friend (and her ex) Aik is nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, a new threat menaces the Heartland from the East, and if she can’t convince a reluctant Gullton city council to prepare for the worst, she may lose everyone and everything she’s ever cared about.
As she uses her magic-like abilities, wit and sheer determination to try to save the city, she’s joined by Raven and his new friends. Will their help tip the scales? And will they finally find out what happened to Aik as a dark storm threatens to sweep them all away?
Forget messy. Things just got apocalyptic.
The Tharassas CycleThe Tharassas Cycle is a four book sci-fantasy series set on the recently colonized world of Tharassas. When humans first arrived on planet, they thought they were alone until the hencha mind made itself known. But now a new threat has arisen to challenge both humankind and their new allies on this alien world.
First Two Books On Sale (& Get a Free Book)
Books 1 & 2 are on sale through March 31st for just 99¢ each (eBooks, all vendors). And if you buy one (or all three) of the main series books, email scott@jscottcoatsworth.com and let him know and he’ll send you a free copy of Tales From Tharassas, the prequel.
Sale Details: https://www.jscottcoatsworth.com/the-hencha-queen-pre-release-deals/
The Hencha Queen (Excerpt)A sharp crack filled the wine cellar. Kerrick swung the heavy mallet back and then assailed the flopwood boards that blocked the tunnel entrance again. The ancient wood splintered under the blow, sending shards clattering across the stone-paved floor.
It felt good to work out his frustrations. Still, the stubborn wood held out against his assault.
He rested the mallet on the black-tiled stone floor, wiping the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. Even after a hundred years, the barrier was strong. He’d tried to pry the boards out of the solid stone, but they’d been fastened in too tightly. Brute force it is.
“You’re doing great!” Cor’Lea’s voice was artificially bright, and she was as tall as he was, maybe a little taller, peering over his shoulder at the sealed tunnel entrance.
Silya had tasked her with bringing him down here to check out these hidden caverns under the Temple, in preparation for the coming war. Important, sure, but also clearly an excuse to get him out from underfoot while she prepared for her official Raising.
He grunted. “Thanks. These boards are hard as iron.” And hard as Silya’s will.
One day things would be different between them, once this crisis was over. I just have to be patient.
Coral laughed. “I’m sure a big, strong man like you can break through them easily.” She squeezed his bicep appreciatively.
He shrugged her off. He wasn’t sure if the gawky initiate was flirting with him or just trying to encourage him to get on with it, but either way, he wasn’t interested. “Stand back.” He hefted the hammer again, and she scurried out of his way.
He suppressed a smile, swinging the mallet around for another heavy blow.
Craack.
This time the board buckled inward visibly. Another few hits should do it.
He pulled back the heavy iron hammer again and hit the same spot with blow after blow. Craack. Craack. Craack.
The mallet broke through and a board fell away into splinters, clattering across the stone floor. One down, three more to go. “Why did they seal this cavern up?”
Cor’Lea gestured at the natural chamber. “There was a winery here before the Temple. Sister Dor said they used to use it for extra wine storage.” She looked around the natural chamber, which was now filled with wooden shelving holding a variety of bottled food stores. “When Jas ordered the Temple to be constructed, they kept this wide cavern and blocked off the rest of the tunnels.”
“Just in case the gully rats got in?” That thief Raven had apparently made his home in one of the underground tunnels. Who knew who else—or what else—lived down there?
Cor’Lea snorted. “Maybe.”
Are tunnels all connected, somehow? That was one of Silya’s most urgent projects, to map out the network of caverns beneath the city. Another reason she sent me down here—to get me out from under her robes.
A few more whacks at the next board served to both break it and let out his frustrations at the situation preventing him from doing his sworn job and keeping them apart. And at what she said was coming.
Craack. Craack. Craack.
The board snapped in half, and he judged that he’d cleared enough space to step through into the blocked-off tunnel. “Hand me that lantern?
Cor’Lea complied, taking the opportunity to brush his hand.
He rolled his eyes. I should be flattered. But his heart was already taken.
It was times like these he wished his brother Enrick were still alive. He’d know what to do. He’d been absurdly confident about everything, even though he’d been younger than Kerrick.
Kerrick wasn’t great with women.
He took the lantern and stepped over the bottom board, holding it in front of him. The bright light temporarily blinded him as he sought to get his bearings.
“What do you see?” Cor’Lea peered through the hole behind him.
His sight adjusted, and the tunnel’s walls came into focus.
He whistled. Stacked along the side of the tunnel were hundreds of crates, all strapped together in groups and sealed. “It’s… I don’t know what it is. But I’ll bet Silya will be surprised.” They’d have to find a place to put all this stuff—whatever it was, it was likely rotten after all this time. Silya needed somewhere to store people, not ancient goods.
Cor’Lea stepped carefully over the splintered boards to join him. “What do you think’s inside them?”
The long row of crates disappeared into the darkness. Who knew what the ancients had considered valuable enough to stash down here. Coin? Lost treasure? “One way to find out. Does the Temple have a crowbar?”
Universal Buy Link: https://www.jscottcoatsworth.com/book/the-hencha-queen/
GiveawayScott is giving away an eBook copy of Tales from Tharassas, the prequel, to everyone who enters the sweepstakes:
a Rafflecopter giveawayhttps://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.jsDirect Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b60e8d47308/?
Author Bio
ScreenshotScott lives with his husband Mark in a yellow bungalow in Sacramento. He was indoctrinated into fantasy and sci fi by his mother at the tender age of nine. He devoured her library, but as he grew up, he wondered where all the people like him were.
He decided that if there weren’t queer characters in his favorite genres, he would remake them to his own ends.
A Rainbow Award winning author, he runs Queer Sci Fi, QueeRomance Ink, Liminal Fiction, and Other Worlds Ink with Mark, sites that celebrate fiction reflecting queer reality, and is the committee chair for the Indie Authors Committee at the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Author Website: https://www.jscottcoatsworth.comAuthor Facebook (Personal): https://www.facebook.com/jscottcoatsworth/Author Facebook (Author Page): https://www.facebook.com/jscottcoatsworthauthorAuthor Mastodon: https://mastodon.otherworldsink.com/@jscottcoatsworthAuthor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jscottcoatsworth/Author Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8392709.J_Scott_CoatsworthAuthor Liminal Fiction (LimFic.com): https://www.limfic.com/mbm-book-author/j-scott-coatsworth/Author QueeRomance Ink: https://www.queeromanceink.com/mbm-book-author/j-scott-coatsworth/Author Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/J.-Scott-Coatsworth/e/B011AFO4OQ
March 13, 2024
Can’t-Wait Wednesday: Between Dragons and Their Wrath by Devin Madson (fantasy)
Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted here to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. Find out more here.
My choice for this week is a tale of dragons, alchemical magic, and forbidden romance, with three protagonists who must must fight for survival against political enemies, dragon hunters, and monsters.
Between Dragons and Their Wrathby Devin Madson
Fiction / Fantasy / Epic Fantasy
479 pages, Kindle Edition
August 27, 2024 by Orbit
From Aurealis Award–nominated author Devin Madson comes a new sweeping epic fantasy full of dragons, alchemical magic, and forbidden romance that unfolds as three people in a shattered empire become entangled in a looming revolution.
When dragons rage, chaos reigns.
Conquest built the Celes Basin, now enemies once more threaten its borders. But when the Lord Reacher declares himself supreme ruler to enforce unity, old angers erupt, threatening to tear the basin apart from within.
Tesha, a glassblower’s apprentice with a talent for poisonwork, becomes a false tribute bride as part of a desperate political plot. In the Reacher’s court, she’s perfectly placed to sabotage him, but her heart has other plans.
Naili is laundress to an eccentric alchemist, a job that has left her with strange new abilities that are slowly consuming her—and attracting the notice of the city’s underground rulers. With time running out, she’ll have to gain power by any means just to survive, let alone change the world.
And in the desolate Shield Mountains, sharp-shooting dragon rider Ashadi protects the basin from the monsters of The Sands beyond, but when an impossible shot pierces his dragon’s glass scales, he becomes the hunted one.
As chaos sweeps across the land, Tesha, Naili, and Ashadi must fight to survive political enemies, long-buried secrets, and monsters both within and without.
Curious about what you’ve been missing? Read my previous reviews of Devin’s work HERE.
March 11, 2024
Book Review: The Daughters’ War by Christopher Buehlman (fantasy)
Author: Christopher Buehlman
Publication Date: June 25, 2024 by Tor Books
Genres: Fantasy
Protagonist Gender: Female
Before I get into my review of The Daughters’ War, I have to jump up and down, wave my hands, and scream it loudly – this is a very different book from The Blacktongue Thief. That book was a fun read that pushed back against the gloominess of grimdark and was full of gallows humor, leaving me grinning between grimaces. This . . . well, this is straight-up grimdark, violent and hopeless and sad, but it’s not just grimdark. It’s also a deeply thoughtful, philosophical read about what makes a soldier, what makes a hero, and what makes a woman.
I said in my review of the first book that, if I were to have one minor complaint, it would be that I’d liked to have gotten to know Galva better. Well, here she is – younger, greener, more innocent, and very much growing into the Galva we’ll come to know and admire. You’d think that would make for a rather bland prequel, a story without edge, because we know she has to survive, but as we learn, outliving your sisters is not the same as surviving.
For lack of a better word, this was a grimdark tragedy. We know from the beginning it’s not going to end well. Innocenta reminds us again and again that humanity is engaged in a war of attrition against the goblins, with her sister Raven Knights as expendable as they are experimental. It’s a brutal story, with grotesque acts of violence that clearly establish the goblins as a terrifying force to be reckoned with. The story shocked me on more than one occasion, but Christopher Buehlman is to be commended for always giving that shock meaning and context. It’s not so much about the horrors, but the hopelessness they breed.
On that note, goblins are not the only monsters in the book. As we see, especially in the later chapters, humans can be just as bad, especially since they choose to be horrible to one another, whereas goblins are just naturally that way. As seen through Galva’s eyes, the betrayal of men, the acts of rape, theft, and abuse are far worse than the most grotesque examples of goblin feeding.
This is not all doom and gloom, however. The sisterhood and camaraderie of the Raven Knights is a wonderful thing to behold, especially where Innocenta is concerned, and the religion into which she introduces Galva, one that teaches them to love the face of death, is both poignant and beautiful. There’s a strength in the bonds between the found family of women, just as there is between families into which we’re born, and even the worst of her sisters and better than the worst of her brothers. When it comes to humanity, there is even justice to be found, and I dare you to find fault with vengeance when it’s explored here.
The Daughters’ War started off very slowly, feeling dry and detached compared to the first book, but once it gets its hooks in you . . . once you begin to think, feel, and experience the world through Galva’s eyes . . . the whole story shifts. It’s so much deeper and darker than I expected, and unbelievably powerful for it. I won’t say that I enjoyed it better than the first, but I appreciated it more, and for that reason I’m giving it an extra half-star.
Rating: 
1/2
My sincere thanks to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
March 10, 2024
Book Review: Scorpica by G.R. Macallister (fantasy)
Author: G.R. Macallister
Publication Date: February 22, 2022 by Saga Press
Genres: Fantasy
Protagonist Gender: Female
Scorpica was a very uneven read that left me with very mixed feelings. I liked (and even loved) parts of it but, in hindsight, I think they were outweighed by the aspects with which I struggled or became frustrated.
What drew me into the book was the promise of a matriarchal society made up of queendoms, a drought of girls, and the stories of mothers within that world. The only thing I love more than female-fronted fantasy is female-led fantasy, so this should have been right in my literary sweet spot . . . but G.R. Macallister doesn’t really do much with the idea. There’s no meaning, value, or distinction to the gender-swapping of traditional fantasy. Matriarchy is no better or worse, or really any different from patriarchy. It’s plagued by the same flaws and problems, which would be fine if there were some sort of commentary to that effect, but the story never explores that. There are some wonderful women in this world, strong characters whom I loved and admired, the queens all seem to be as greedy, spiteful, mad with power as any king.
Similarly, in a book that could have done some wonderful work with gender, there’s no exploration of transgender issues here. Men are an unwanted commodity in the queendom of Scorpica, sold off to other queendoms upon birth. There’s no consideration given to raising them as girls, even when the drought of girls leaves them struggling to replenish their ranks of warriors. Necessity, as they say, is the mother of invention, and going decades without girls would almost certainly give rise to some plan for creating girls. There have been recent fantasies that have done a wonderful job of exploring the issue (Alina Boyden, Gretchen Felker-Martin, Maya Deane, Heather K. O’Malley, Zabé Ellor), but I’d have even settled for a problematic exploration, given the tone of the book, something done forcefully, perhaps creating perhaps a lower caste of warriors. It wouldn’t have been ideal, but it would have at least opened the door for some layer of gender commentary.
The world-building here was interesting, but falls into the trap of not only settling for gender-based rule, but role-based societies – one of warriors, one of magic users, one of bureaucrats, etc. You’re born into both a gender and a role, and while that role can be changed (there’s a pivotal theft of girls during the drought), you cannot choose to change it or seemingly even want to change it (there’s not even a hint of girls wanting to explore some other role). Again, this static sort of society, one in which gender and role are entirely fixed, is ripe for some level of commentary, but it’s all just accepted, never questioned.
Having said all that, there were some exciting aspects of the plot that kept me reading, particularly that of the Rovers. They’re our only exploration of outlaw characters who exist outside a queendom’s role, and the camaraderie of the group offers a genuine sense of found-family that’s largely absent from the rest of the book. The story of the queen of Arca intrigued me, being the only thread in the book where there’s any exploration of sharing magic and power with a man. There was so much potential there, especially in her swing towards pure villainy, but it’s all squandered, ending too easily without any consequence. And then there’s the tension within Scorpica between usurper queen and a girl still loyal to her predecessor, which seems destined for something important, especially with a carefully worded agreement between them, but nothing significant comes of it. Finally, there are the intertwined stories of the near-immortal sorcerer demigod and daughter with explosive power mentioned in the blurb, which is the only thing that drives any real promise of change within the story, but it all leads up to an all-too-easy anticlimactic resolution that leaves us with more questions with answers.
As I said, very mixed feelings here. I liked enough of Scorpica to keep me reading, and I had high hopes for some of the characters and plot threads, but the ways in which that potential felt squandered have me unsure as to whether or not I want to explore Arca, the sequel. Part of me would like to see what Macallister does with the story, but aside from the mention of a possible future king, I’ve yet to see any reviews that mention it achieving the philosophical depth for which I was hoping.
Rating:
March 8, 2024
Sci-Fi/Erotica Experts Weigh In on Sex in 2040
I had the pleasure of being invited to share my thoughts on what erotic pleasures 2040 may hold in the latest Future of Sex article.
Am I being optimistic? Soft hearted? Too romantic? Let me know. 
Sci-Fi/Erotica Experts Weigh In on Sex in 2040
Fetish & Fantasy Freebie Friday – Putting the TG in TGIF!
Well, if it’s Friday, then it must be time to bend our way into the weekend with Fetish & Fantasy Freebie Friday!
Every Friday I search through the free titles on Amazon, looking for those that might be of interest to similarly bent readers, fans, and lovers. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon’s free reading applications.
Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.
Enjoy!
March 6, 2024
Can’t-Wait Wednesday: The Daughters’ War by Christopher Buehlman (fantasy)
Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted here to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. Find out more here.
My choice for this week is a prequel to one of my favorite maturesmirk fantasies – stories that are edgy, violent, profane, and amusing!
The Daughters’ War by Christopher Buehlman
Fiction / Fantasy / Epic Fantasy
416 pages, Hardcover
June 25, 2024 by Tor Books
Enter the fray in this luminous new adventure from Christopher Buehlman, set during the war-torn, goblin-infested years just before The Blacktongue Thief .
The goblins have killed all of our horses and most of our men.
They have enslaved our cities, burned our fields, and still they wage war.
Now, our daughters take up arms.
Galva ― Galvicha to her three brothers, two of whom the goblins will kill ― has defied her family’s wishes and joined the army’s untested new unit, the Raven Knights. They march toward a once-beautiful city overrun by the goblin horde, accompanied by scores of giant war corvids. Made with the darkest magics, these fearsome black birds may hold the key to stopping the goblins in their war to make cattle of mankind.
The road to victory is bloody, and goblins are clever and merciless. The Raven Knights can take nothing for granted ― not the bonds of family, nor the wisdom of their leaders, nor their own safety against the dangerous war birds at their side. But some hopes are worth any risk.
Curious about what you’ve been missing? Read my previous reviews of Christopher’s work HERE.
March 3, 2024
Book Review: Pliable Truths by Dayton Ward (sci-fi)
Author: Dayton Ward
Publication Date: May 21, 2024 by Pocket Books/Star Trek
Genres: Science Fiction
Protagonist Gender: Various
Back in the heyday of Star Trek’s first revival, when we had The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager soaring across our screens, I was a devoted reader of the wider tie-in literary universe. There was nothing like going to the bookstore and seeing a new ‘episode’ on the shelves, just waiting to be devoured.
As Trek disappeared from our screens, it largely disappeared from my shelves as well. I came back to it on occasion, as cover blurbs drew me in, but it felt as if the tie-in universe had been stretched too far, with too many authors struggling to capture the personalities of the characters. Strange New Worlds rekindled my love of all things Trek, however, so when I saw a TNG/DS9 crossover with Picard and Garak on the cover, I decided to beam aboard.
I am delighted to say Dayton Ward demonstrates precisely the grasp of the universe and its personalities that I missed. Pliable Truths felt like a missing episode that more directly connects the TNG and DS9 universes. It explores the Cardassian withdrawal from Bajoran, the skepticism with which the Federation’s assistance is seen, and the consequences of war on all sides. Given all that’s happening in the Ukraine and Palestine, it’s a very timely story, and one that reminds us of how well Trek has always shone a spotlight on current affairs.
One of the things I felt Ward did really well was explore Captain Picard’s discomfort in facing the Cardassians again, so soon after his torture at their hands. He’s still the strong, capable, commanding officer we know, but we see him get agitated and distracted in a way that was never really explored in the series. I also felt Ward did an exemplary job of making this about more than just Picard and the Enterprise crew. While they are there to render assistance and help negotiate peace, it’s as allies, not saviors. Indeed, significant portions of the book explore how the Bajorans themselves band together to resist, infiltrate, and quietly combat their oppressors.
Being something of a gap book that takes place before DS9, we don’t encounter a lot of that cast, but I enjoyed seeing how characters like Kira and Miles came to join the crew, and how Odo, Quark, and Garak were already establishing their odd camaraderie. There was enough here to feel familiar, but the story itself felt necessary, a tale that needed to be told as opposed to just an excuse to revisit old friends.
Rating:
My sincere thanks to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
March 1, 2024
Fetish & Fantasy Freebie Friday – Putting the TG in TGIF!
Well, if it’s Friday, then it must be time to bend our way into the weekend with Fetish & Fantasy Freebie Friday!
Every Friday I search through the free titles on Amazon, looking for those that might be of interest to similarly bent readers, fans, and lovers. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon’s free reading applications.
Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.
Enjoy!
